Talk me into/out of a Cayman - thinking about making a change
 

I've had my 2000 S since 2012 and have put nearly 50,000 mostly trouble free miles on it (a single breakdown due to CPS sensor a few years back) and I have had a really fun journey learning to work on it, building it out for track work, etc..., but I am getting the itch to try something new. I've got my eye on getting a 2009-2012 987.2 Cayman. At first I thought about a PDK, but I am leaning to staying with a 6 speed. I wouldn't mind a base, and I think the sweet spot for price/performance might be a 2009 base although if a well priced S were to appear I would not be opposed.

Must have options:

• Not a tan interior.

Really want:

• Xenon light with active cornering (or whatever they call it)
• Cruise control (maybe that is standard on the newer cars?)
• Blue body, although that seems really rare. I would be happy with any color though.

Would be nice:

• Sport seats
• Sport chrono
• PASM - but any suspension it comes with will probably get replaced in short order with some coilovers or a Bilstein pro-kit with eibach springs, so this isn't key

I just had a great weekend in my Boxster at Roebling Road, broke into the 1:25's for the first time and I am just over a second within the time that a pro coach drove my car there back in 2017, and I think that is a good way to go out on top.

The week before that I drove a Spec Boxster for the first time, what a rush. But it has got me thinking about moving forward. I am thinking about building out some sort of race car, or maybe joining an endurance racing team for some events, either in that same Spec Boxster, or I have a few other possible seats.

So the Cayman would be used for just driving around, and maybe taking to PCA HPDE events when I instruct.

Has anyone else had the same thoughts? Or is this going to be the one that got away when I look back in 2-3 years and am missing the Boxster?

Any thoughts about my must haves/wants on the option list? Or does anyone know of a sweet deal on a car for sale?

Thanks,

Steve

do it. stay away from pasm if you can - it can never be turned off; cayman owners are forced to put switches on the yaw sensor to disable it. or pay big $ to get a replacement dsc (?) controller with sportier settings. do the pdk; it will make you faster. do the S for the same reason. also, only the S got dfi in 2009, not the base; not sure about ims?

PASM seems to be rare, at least out of all the cars I looked at so far, none have had it :) SO I think I might be good there by default...

2009 Cayman base is the new 9A1 engine at 2.9L but with no DFI, 2009 Cayman S is 3.4L 9A1 with DFI.

PDK... my friend has a 2016 Cayman S with PDK and he is really fast... I love how it zips off the shifting, especially downshifting into 2nd for a quick burst when exiting a corner... I'm still on the fence there.... :)

9a1 motor is a yes. Cayman is a great car. Trust me though, dont build a race car, just buy one.

987.2 cayman is a great DE car

RennsportKC has a beautiful 2009 Cayman S track car for sale for $40K, i am drooling over that one... But for this car i still want to street drive it. Just suspension and front gt3 lca and i would be set :)

I had an 08 Cayman S. Its a very capable car but has no character and I don't care for 987 interiors. I didn't get attached to it. It only lasted a year.

I realize it's just personal taste, but what don't you like about them?

It just looks dated but not enough to be considered classic. I don't mind the 986 interiors at all. It probably doesn't make sense and yes its just personal taste.

I had an '07 Cayman S. Once it got above 4200 RPM's it was a BEAST.

Found one, did a PPI, clean overrevs and DME report, but popped out of 2nd gear several times, i didn't think that was as common on the 987.2 generation, uggg. I considered it to be $110 well spent :) I'll post up the vin to possibly help the next buyer, but if they give me a big enough discount i might deal with getting it solved (also pending what my local Indy says but i am 99.999% a no). Other than this, the car was perfect ;)

Here is the VIN, look at this option sheet :)

https://vinanalytics.com/car/WP0AA2A80BU761477/

I don't know how simple it is to swap in a used transmission (there seem to be several on eBay) but then I would lose the locking diff, and I have too many projects already, I just want to get in and drive :) And then do some suspension work, but mostly just drive :)

Maybe this could be a wheeler dealer car?

tranny swap is no big deal if you have a way to support it. But I'm not sure it makes sense to go into a car having to do that. there are plenty around.

Here are my observations based on the perpetual hunt for the next Wheeler Dealer car...

There were only apporx 5000 total 987.2 Caymans sold across the 4 yrs (base & S), so there aren't many to choose from. Prices drop significantly once you pass the 60K mi barrier. In typical Porsche fashion, 80% of the cars are silver, gray, black, or white. The other 20% are divided amongst the rest of the colors.

Here is my guestimate on the options you listed:
Cruise - 100% as it's std
Bi-xenon - 50% (not sure if the dynamic corning was std with xenon)
Sport Chrono - 35%
Sport Seats - 20%
PASM - 15%

Finding one with all these options would be rare, esp in a base. S models tend to have more options but there are fewer S models compared to base (prob 2-1 base vs S). But you probably have a better chance of finding a manual in the base.

You mentioned the race car at RennsportKC. I know you're not interested, but I know the owner Karl. He's a good guy and a very good mechanic.

There's a nice black base '11 Cayman that been for sale in the San Diego area for quite a while. Don't remember how many of the options it has but it's around 30K mi and he wants $31K. Prob a bit ambitious for a base and he may be willing to deal since it's been for sale for 6-8 mo. But for that money, you could have an 09 Box S. ;)

Just my $.02 worth on what I've seen across the market. Hope it helps. Good luck.

I've been reading their blog for some time, I would have no hesitation about buying a car from them or based on their recommendation. I actually even called him one time to chat about Boxsters and chain ramp guides and the like, even though it was clear I was too far away to be his customer, he was very helpful and friendly and gave lots of good info to me. :cheers:

Thanks for that other info as well.

Went back to SD CL to see if the black 11 was still for sale. Don't see it but found this one:

https://orangecounty.craigslist.org/ctd/d/san-juan-capistrano-2011-porsche-cayman/6801134079.html

Has a lot of the items you want except 6sp and PASM. $30.6 Once again, it will be hard to find one with everything. This one prob isn't for you since it's a PDK, but you don't see many bases with bi-xenon w/ DC, SC, and sport seats. Plus Sport Steering wheel w/ paddle shifters AND limited slip diff.

Hello Steve,

This looks like a really nice car, my office is about 20-30 minutes away if you want I could check it out for you.

And, like someone already mention, you don't want PASM as this car is begin for coilovers, and perhaps a nice OS Giken LSD :-)
.
PS: It has the right color too .. :p

https://pcaucr.org/classifieds/show-ad/2306/2012-cayman-r/limehouse/ucr-porsches-for-sale-wanted/

$35k usd before haggle.

That might be worth a stretch to my budget, the Cayman R is my dream car :)

I heard that the "big" PDK with the limited slip is very robust, so I would not be opposed to it :)

I guess now that I am getting more close to pulling the trigger it is time to see how deep I will dig into the pocketbook. I guess that is one way to tell how ready I am :)

Just looked at the CarFax on the 11 in SJC. It's not a virgin.

And wonder about the R up north. Ad says the body is perfect yet it has a salvage title. Wonder how that happens?